King Charles III delivered a historic speech in the Canadian Parliament on Tuesday, as the country, where the British monarch is head of state, faced unprecedented threats from the United States (U.S.) President Donald Trump.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said he had planned to use the king’s first visit to Canada to emphasize Canadian sovereignty.
“This historic honor corresponds to the gravity of our times,” said Carney.
The seventy-six-year-old king, who is undergoing cancer treatment, had arrived in the Canadian capital at the invitation of the prime minister.
King Charles had never publicly commented on Trump’s repeated statements about turning Canada into the 51st U.S. state, so many had closely watched to see whether he would address the issue in his speech.
Trump had also questioned the global trade order and initiated tariff wars against both allied and rival countries, particularly targeting his northern neighbor – Canada.
The so-called “speech from the throne” took place in the Senate, which is temporarily housed in a former train station because the parliament building is under renovation.
Although the king read the speech as if it were his own words, it was in fact written by the prime minister’s cabinet and outlined the government’s priorities for “building a strong Canada,” as well as how those goals would be achieved.
Canada’s Liberal Party, led by Carney – a technocrat with no prior political experience – had won the parliamentary elections on April 28th, following a campaign entirely focused on the stance toward Trump.
Carney had promised the greatest transformation of Canada’s economy since World War II in order to “stand up to” the U.S. president.
The speech was also expected to include a reaffirmation of Canadian sovereignty, which Trump had repeatedly threatened by suggesting that the U.S. annex Canada.
Exceptional symbolism
“When it came to symbolism – it was exceptional because this was only the third time that a monarch had spoken at the opening of Parliament,” said Felix Mathieu, a political scientist from the University of Quebec.
The speech from the throne had been delivered in person only twice before – 1957 and 1977 – by the then-head of state and Charles’s mother, the late Queen Elizabeth II.
“Everything surrounding the speech from the throne was interesting,” added Mathieu, referring to the “message to Donald Trump” that would show “Canada is not alone in this fight.”
Thousands of people came to the capital on Monday to greet the King and Queen Camilla on the first day of their brief visit.
For 32-year-old Srikant Mogulalu, the king was in Canada to send a “clear message to Trump – that it’s not for sale.”
Sixty-year-old retiree Dave Shaw said that “this was a great time for the king to be here – in this geopolitical moment and considering the circumstances Canada is in.”
